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Top 10 Camera Accessories – Stocking Stuffers under $100

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Camera Strap  You don’t need to advertise to the world which brand and model you own via your camera strap. A plain generic strap is a safer option. Pacsafe Strapsafe100 is easily removable with locking carabiners, but can’t be cut by thieves. Extra Memory Cards I recommend SanDisk as a solid reliable brand. You don’t have to buy the most expensive card if your camera is not shooting 4K or rapid bursts. Use the widget on the SanDisk website to see which card they recommend for your camera. Mini Tripod Small, light, cheap. Throw it in your backpack and it may just save the day when you haven’t packed your big tripod. (You can also use it to mount your off camera flash.) The Gorillapod is a design classic. Spare Battery Unless your shooting with an all mechanical film camera, you’re going to be using battery power. Get a spare so you don’t run out of juice. Polarizing filter The world looks better when it’s polarized. Less glare, bluer skies, greener vegetation.  Get a pair …

Reforming a house in Japan

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On April 3rd 2015, I moved into the new house. I was well aware that it would need some renovation work. Inside was mainly cosmetic and could wait, but the outside needed immediate work. Some of the drains at the house had been detached by previous typhoons. Leaks had occurred where water pooled up on the balcony and flowed in through air vents. Other water leaks had been caused by air vents missing hoods. In Okinawa rainy season is May to early June. It’s wet but the rain is falling vertically. However in  July, August and September there are typhoons. If you have an ocean view,  you are going to get hit by the full force of the wind and horizontal rain. The first job was to buy a power washer and clean the dirt off everything within reach. This enabled me to reveal any cracks in the concrete and assess the problems. Most homes in Okinawa are built out of reinforced concrete with a core of steel rebar. They are strong and able to withstand …

Buying a house in Japan

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2015 has been a busy year, just one of the reasons is that in March I bought my first house. It was a relatively quick and painless process, but it was difficult finding information about all the associated fees in English so hopefully this post will help others. Back in December 2014, I was browsing the internet housing website Suumo. I wanted to check out the prices, and see what was available in northern Okinawa.  One property in Motobu caught my attention, or to be more specific the view from the house looked amazing. The website showed an approximate location so I decided to drive over. I found the house, and although there were no FOR SALE signs, I knocked on the door. The owner came out a little surprised, but was very friendly.  We had a brief chat and I had a quick look at the exterior. Although it was cloudy, the view was as I’d hoped, fantastic. The next day I called the toll-free number of the Sumo website and was connected through …

Nobuko Oshiro, Kyoshi 8th dan Okinawa Karate-do Shorinryu, Taishinkan Association

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At 8th-dan Nobuko Oshiro is the highest ranked woman in Okinawa. On Friday, I photographed her at her dojo in Urasoe. At 68 she is strong and healthly, kicking high and punching hard. In a country where women are sometimes seen as decorative “office flowers” Oshiro sensei is breaking down boundaries and shattering ceilings. The phrase “you hit like a girl” is not going to be uttered in her dojo as anything other than a compliment. Photographed with the Pentax 645Z and 90mm lens. Lit with a single Profoto pro-head in a white softlight reflector powered by a 7a generator.

Princess Habu / Hime Habu

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Found this little guy chilling out in the grass in the garden. Took an iPhone pic then asked Okinawa Nature Photograher Shawn Miller what it is. Turns out it is a juvenile Princess habu (Ovophis okinavensis), a venomous pit viper species. The haemotoxic venom is not enough to kill an human, but wouldn’t want the cat or dog to get bitten. I’ll keep the grass and scrub near the house cut short so there are fewer places for them to hide.